Five and ten drum flush unit



Sept. 1, 1953 KAYE I 2,650,601

FIVE AND TEN DRUM FLUSH uun Filed Deg. 14, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Rosal a-i- LEE Kn r:

ATTORNEYS? Sept. 1, 1953 R. 1.. KAYE FIVE AND TEN DRUM FLUSH UNIT 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 14, 1950 INVENTOR Roam: T LEI: Kara.

BY Mm V M ATTORNEY:

Sept. 1, 1953 Patented Sept. 1, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE FIVE AND TEN DRUM FLUSH UNIT Robert Lee Kaye, Newark, N. J.

Application December 14, 1950, sem no. 200,884

4 Claims. (01. 134-107) The present invention concerns the reconditioning of metal barrels and drums by knife spraying to remove internal deposits of all sorts, flushing and rinsing so as to obtain a clean sur face ready for painting or to receive new contents without contamination. 4

It is the object of the invention to provide a novel flush and rinse unit having revolving knife spray nozzles which cover the entire inside of a drum.

It is an object of the invention to provide variable time control means whereby a drum is put through a flush, rinse and drain cycle repetitively.

It is an object of the invention to provide proper balance between volume and pressure of fluid during the cleaning operation.

In the cleaning and reconditioning of drums one of the high cost operations is chaining or the removal of resistant coatings or contents by revolving the drum with steel balls or a length of chain inside. In some stubborn cases sand blasting is employed. Because of the greatly increased cost of cleaning such "chainers are avoided and bring a much lower price on the market. Tests have shown that the present invention reduces the number of drums which re quire chaining by as much as 50% or more In the cleaning of drums with prior art equipment one serious problem has been the collection of cleaning fluid within the drum in such quan-- titles as to impede and greatly reduce the efficiency of the cleaning. action. This condition almost necessarily follows from the rate of input of fluid into the barrel and the relatively small effective bung area for drainage during the cleaning operation. With the present invention a drum to be cleaned is positioned horizontally with its bung down. .A rotating fan spray nozzle extends into the drum. Optimum operating conditions have been found to be a feed of twenty gallons per minute at eighty pounds pressure. This flow causes. about two inches of fluid to collectin the bottom or bung side of the drum during cleaning. At this level sufficient pressure builds up within the drum to stabilize conditions by forcing'a fluid flow out of the bung of twenty gallons per minute.

The fluid layer, which in previous methods and equipment for cleaning reached greater depths, has previously made any spray cleaning ineflective on the lower portion of the drum.

It is an object of the invention to provide a cleaning fluid spray which will effectively cut through a water cushion and clean at the bottom thereof. a

It'is an object of the invention to provide a flushing and rinsing unit for drums comprising atank having rotating fan shaped spray nozzle therein arranged to project inside of drums to be cleaned, heating means for a hot caustic solu- Fig. 2 is a side elevation partly sectioned view" of Fig. 1. a

Fig. 3 is a sectional view along the nozzle axis. Fig. 4 is a fragmentary view of a detail of construction. r

Fig. 5 is a detail of the nozzle drive mechanism.

One form of flush and rinse unit comprises an elongate rectangular tank 10 preferably of metal such as quarter inch steel plate or the like having inner bracing angle members ll positioned about six inches below the upper elongate edge of tank |0l Angle members ll afford a.

flange like surface or shelf I2 along each side of tank Ill and are braced by cross angles l3. The

upper elongate edges of tank H) are provided with depressions 14 forming pairs of drum support circular segments having a radius substan- I tially the same as that of a drum to be cleaned so as to act as an effective holding means to anchor the drum while cleaning. Depressions H.

are shallow so that it is possible to roll drums in and out of them by hand. Where heavier drums are to be cleaned it may be well to make the segmental radius larger so that the drums can be rolled out more easily.

Cross angles l3 are preferably located at each pair of depressions l4 and provide support for bearings IS in which is journaled elongate drive shaft l6 extending the length of tank In and out one end thereof to a gear reducer l1 and one horse power drive motor l8 mounted ona shelf or platform 19 on the outside of an end Wall of tank It). Shaft l6 has a worm 20 keyed thereto adjacent each bearing I5. Near the middle of tank In and paralleling shaft I6 is mounted a cleaning fluid supply header 2| capable of withstanding a hot caustic cleaning fluid at an operating pressure of over eighty pounds per square inch. Header 2| projects through an end wall of tank [0 and is arranged to be coupled with a caustic fluid supply or a circulating pump 22.

Uprightfeed pipes 23 are connected to header inven- 2i opposite the nadir of depressions l4. A rotating head portion 24 is mounted on each feed pipe 23 by means of a bearing assembly having a packing gland or the like. A pinion 25 is keyed to rotating head portion 24 and mates with worm 20. Head portion 24 is provided with a nozzle 26 producing a fan shaped spray.

Nozzle 26 may be constructed by closing one end of a pipe elbow 21 and saw cutting a inch slot 28 closely adjacent the closedend. Where lo the closing disk 29 of elbow 21'is held by one or more connections 30, which obstruct fluid flow, connection 30 is at one side not at the top or bottom. Where two connections were emplqyedfi they should not be on either the vertical or horil5 zontal axis. In this way dead spots ofi-fzcmaction are avoided as all interior parts ofa the drum re ceive sprayed cleaning solution directly at least once every revolution of nozzle 26. Slot 28 should-l not cover less than 120 degrees of are.

eatin miles tiert am r th like-are proide-Qatpne-s de of tank; H1 A.:.drain;:3 o:- catedgt-the bottom of tank -I 0 and is closed--bye ov bl v fiowzpin 33- havinga;: .l' r an:- dle, 34; I A l-removablevcover of ,number four ex p nded m tal sr tinsdiwl es l s ly .the.su1:.-- fQ QQQ IZ and covers-the top of tank llll Coverr; 35 is provided with a series of apertures through:. which rotatin .headnzpcrtionsz 2.4: pITOl Qt'nWit/ ample clearance to permit cleaning fluidjofiow so.

baok into-rta lkglll frornlthe drums, being cleaned. Cover 35 is well below the lowest pointiof depress: signs I 4;. (and -;nozzles as project .wellabove the edge of tank Ill so as to enter a drum and heir completely .enclosed'thereby;

y: eepening depressions I 4nozzles -2fiimay. be lowered below the edge of the walls of tankdQ:v Thisconstruction guards the nozzles-25 andmaterially speedszuphandling if-ycombinedwith-zthe movablerails: 48. .OflFig. 4;; A painof thesevrails 4o 48. runs the; entire length of tank l0 .and may. be, quickly braised to provide. av smooth.- running: surface forlpositioningor removing drums. Deep. depressions 39 zmake this construction,.-desirab1e so;that..the.-drums,.may be handleidzmoreeasily. 4.5 Rails 48. are held by bolts 40rwhich;ride:.;in slots 4linthe upper part-of the walls of tankzms, Rails- 48 maybe raised and lowered byMcamsAZ' and. levers'43 adjacent each end of thearails: 48;: Eachz: pair-ofcams 42 at one endare preferably-joined. 50 bya rod-44 running across tank 10 :and'the. pain: isoperated by .a single .lever .43."

While an external: supply of causticzsolutions may-be -fed:-to main 2 i, it; ispreferred to utilize-, tank. lor-asca reservoir in whichfthe fluid; ;supp1y; is;.,heated,-.screenedgand recirculateda. A.;ten 0 2; fifteen horse power motor 36drives; pmnpfil. v Fournr movahleg cre nsfl are moun ed 3 333 angle oiv forty-five degrees in the; endf; tank 4.0:: adjacent. intake 38 of pump 22: Screens .3lare made of; 0.099--wire giving a seventy-five percent; opening. Tilting provides a; soreening.. ar ea of, twelve square feet andprevents rapid clogging...

Inthe,formoflinventionshown in Figs. 1 and .2

rinsetaction. is obtained by supplyingsteam tor svvi tch ,for repeating a spray cycle fromone tQ :7o..

ten times may be usedto control thelpresentinvention. Best results are obtained bypumping; for; twenty seconds andstoppingv the. flow for;- ten seconds so the drums can drain. A variable dial;

settingrpermitsadju t nt; f. the pumpi gand 5-,

drain cycle from zero to fifty-five seconds. After the final drain another timer operates a magnetic steam valve to give a rinse of steam through nozzles 26 for about twenty seconds. During the flush, drain and steam rinse period a red light is on. When the final rinse is complete a green light comes on to indicate the drums are ready for removal and are to be replaced.

The operation of the device is as follows:

Drums to,.be cleaned {are rolled onto the upper edges of the walls of tank l0 until they rest in depressions l4 with their bungs down and head portion 24 with nozzle 26 extending into the drum: .In practice the invention is normally constructed so that the nozzle is nearer the bottom -of-thehorizontal drum than the top both because theejan, spray. .musttcut through the two inch solution cushion inside the drum, also the shorter head portion 24 is made the easier and more quickly the nozzle can be inserted through the bung-rand cremoved therefrom; Again 7 the lower headmortion; 24 is made the less-likely' it will.- be

damaged; and; bent. out of -line.-

Where-a fiush and rinse unit; is .designed i'or" a-ldrumrof a; given diameter'then the height of" nozzle 26 above the edge, of-the-wallsof tankilflg is, such'that; the drum:may be pivoted-at the edge ofgdepressionfl andsthefnozzle 26-enters the drum without lifting This; constructionnmakes removal after cleaning even more simple as the:

drum is already; positioned; The height :0f:-noz zle; 26 above the edge of tankj-l-ll 'is preferab1y:of

theorder of one-thirdihe radius-of; a drum;-to;-be,

cleaned; Nozzle 245 extends, :above the-bottom of depression about two-thirds: the--radius-:.of :a

drum.

With the drums iIlTDOSitiOD-ffifld allthe-nozzles into header 24zunder a pressure of aboutci-ghty pounds per. square inch.: The cleaning fluidflows intoifeed pipes 23.: through; the bearing assembly,.headport-ion 24' and out. slot :28 in: elbow 21 of nozzlelfirc Thefluid whendischarged under such pressure forms rthin. fan shaped: cutting? stream which is sheetlikein; appearance; The-- stream canecover 250:or-;:more ,degrees-qofgaarc;

the closing disk'29beingheld inrplac,e-by-an;-in-

tegral; metal: :connecting t link 3.0- located ;to 1- one side of: the vertical-axiszasdiscussedabovez; This construction is. inexpensive and the "fan; shaped; stream may be adjusted by tapping; disk 29 with a-hammeror-prying-slot 28.;with a screwdriveror heavier tool.

Oneadjusted at T16" slot it is seldom: necessary .to; service this: con:

unscrewing" elbow 21.

a wide range.

Drivemotor- I8 is; energized and gear reducer; Il"'rotates shaft;- lfiztin ,bearingsji; Worm 20 turnspinion Y-25y1causing nozzle 26,-;to revolve at ten or fifteen revolutions. per minute. Slower; or faster rates.-of-:rotation maybe employed depending .upon the character of the coating .within thedrum tobe cleaned;

removes most-g coatings; When. stable. .fluid flow conditions are vestablishedwi-thin a drum being cleaned about. two inchesiof; fluid :is present in .the bottom, but the fan cuts through this as. well...

A flow -of'. about. twenty; gallons. per minute has been sele'otedas optimum for the 1 general. purposemachine.

Therotatingefanyof hot caustic solution has, both a knife action a d a solvent action andsoon and cleans most effectively. It will be noted that the nozzle 26 is closer to the bottom than the top of the drum and therefore initially has a strong cleaning action before the fluid layer accumulates.

During cleaning fluid runs out of the bungs of the drums, through the openings in expanded metal and into the interior of tank ill where it is kept hot by coils 3|. Hot caustic fluid flows out overflow pipe 33, is strained and recirculated by a pump. straining may not be necessary if drain 32 is connected to the intake of pump 22 and extra solution is added, as pipe 33 takes fluid only from the top of the tank and solid matter collects in the bottom. This construction would require a two way distributor valve in drain 32, one branch leading to sewage and the other to the intake of pump 22.

After a run of about flve minutes, which includes about ten cycles of twenty seconds pumping and ten seconds draining, the fluid flow through header 2| is shut off by a valve and a steam rinse is applied by admitting steam to header 2 I. The drums are removed by rolling on the edge of tank as soon as the condensed steam has drained out of them.

After a run of about one thousand drums it is usually desirable to lift overflow pipe 33 out of tank I by handle 34. All solid matter is washed with the spent cleaning fluid down drain 32 and new caustic solution supplied to tank H) for the succeeding run. A ten drum unit requires about eight hundred gallons of solution.

While there has been described what is at present considered to be the preferred embodiment of this invention, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the invention, and it is therefore intended in the appended claims to cover in generic terms all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

I claim:

1. In combination in a multiple drum cleaning device, an elongate tank, having a plurality of drum positioning means along one long edge thereof, cross frame members corresponding to said drum positioning means and extending across the width of said tank, a header mounted within the tank and extending along its length, a fluid circulating pump connected to supply cleaning fluid under pressure to said header, means to supply fluid from said tank to the intake of said pump, heating means carried by said tank for heating the cleaning fluid in the tank, a drive shaft journaled in bearings carried by 5 Number said cross frame members and extending along the length of said tank, a plurality of spaced riser pipes each having a flxed part connected to said header adjacent a cross frame member and a drum positioning means and a rotatable part geared to said drive shaft, each rotatable part having an upstanding nozzle means with a narrow slit therein adjacent its upper end, said slit being arranged to produce a fan shaped knifelike flow of cleaning fluid of high velocity, each said nozzle means being connected to said header through one of said riser pipes having a fixed part and a movable part, drive means connected to said drive shaft and arranged to rotate said shaft at a low controlled speed to maximize the kinetic energy and therefore the knife-like action of said fan-shaped flow of cleaning fluid from said slits by opposing any unbalanced reaction turbine effect of said fluid flow and combination overflow and drain means for said tank comprising an opening in the bottom of said tank and an open ended cylinder removably positioned over said opening whereby overflow fluid will flow over the open end of said cylinder and the removal of the cylinder causes the tank to drain out said opening.

2. The combination set forth in claim 1, filter means within said tank comprising inclined screens closely adjacent that end of said tank from which fluid is withdrawn by said circulating pump.

3. The combination set forth in claim 2, a plurality of spaced anchor means carried by the upper, drum supporting edges of said tank.

4. The combination set forth in claim 3, rail members movably mounted on the side of said tank and movable to a first position in which said anchor means effectively holds drums in cleaning position and movable to a second position in which drums roll free of said anchor means.

ROBERT LEE KAYE.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Kellogg Apr. 12, 1910 Zunner May 21, 1912 Couchman July 18, 1916 Jensen Oct. 8, 1929 Drechsler Apr. 9, 1940 FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date Great Britain Sept. 15, 1936 Number 

